Shloka 6
पाण्डोः प्रेतकार्य-सम्पादनम्
Pāṇḍu’s Funeral Rites and Public Mourning
ततस्तां च मृगीं तं च रुक्मपुड्खै: सुपत्रिभि: । निर्बिभेद शरैस्ती3्ष्णै: पाण्डु: पउचभिराशुगै:,उसे देखते ही राजा पाण्डुने पाँच सुन्दर एवं सुनहरे पंखोंसे युक्त तीखे तथा शीघ्रगामी बाणोंद्वारा, उस मृगी और मृगको भी बींध डाला
tatastāṃ ca mṛgīṃ taṃ ca rukmapuṅkhaiḥ supatribhiḥ | nirbibheda śarais tīkṣṇaiḥ pāṇḍuḥ pañcabhir āśugaiḥ ||
Then King Pāṇḍu, seeing both the doe and the stag, pierced them with five swift, sharp arrows, each adorned with golden shafts and fine feathers—an act that, though fitting a hunter’s aim, sets in motion a grave ethical consequence because it strikes at life in a vulnerable moment and without discernment.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foreshadows the ethical principle that actions—especially those involving harm—carry consequences beyond immediate intent; royal power and skill must be governed by discernment (viveka) and restraint, or they can become the cause of suffering and downfall.
Vaiśampāyana narrates that King Pāṇḍu shoots and pierces both a doe and a stag with five swift, sharp, well-fletched golden arrows—an event that leads into the well-known turning point of the Pāṇḍu narrative.